The Appeal of Leaders and Their Foreign Policy When Death Is in the Air: a Perspective From Ontological Security Theory and Terror Management Theory The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Terwilliger, Evan. 2020. The Appeal of Leaders and Their Foreign Policy When Death Is in the Air: a Perspective From Ontological Security Theory and Terror Management Theory. Master's thesis, Harvard Extension School. Citable link https://nrs.harvard.edu/URN-3:HUL.INSTREPOS:37365070 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA The Appeal of Leaders and theirArticle Foreign I. Policy When Death is in the Air: A Perspective from Ontological Security Theory and Terror Management Theory Evan Terwilliger A Thesis in the Field of International Relations for the Degree of Master of Liberal Arts in Extension Studies Harvard University May 2020 Copyright 2020 Evan Terwilliger Abstract Perhaps dead bodies affect opinions of International Relations more than we think – or at least in a different way than we have thought about them before. Humans may not be fully aware of the subconscious forces that the thought of death supposedly awakens within them. This lack of awareness may lead to unsavory international policy outcomes (and seemingly irrational justifications thereof). Human mortality serves as an impetus, inter alia, for violent war (Archduke Ferdinand and WWI), the use of retaliatory torture (the CIA’s so-called enhanced interrogation techniques post-9/11), reconciliation and justice-seeking initiatives (after the genocides in Rwanda, Cambodia, and others), and the election of political leaders. However, does even just looking at pictures of a dead body change how we think about international policy? The current body of IR security literature lacks an analysis of how visual images of dead bodies interact with the formation of public opinion of our own security, the U.S. president, and U.S. foreign policy. If such images stimulate our fear of death (as proposed by Terror Management Theory), then we manage that terror by changing our behavior, actions, and opinions. Our management of that terror makes us unstable. By seeking stability and rebuilding ontological security (as proposed by Ontological Security Theory), which is social and operates at the collective level (the ontological security of American society), Americans’ opinions about their security, the president, and the president’s foreign policy choices might change in relation to the events. iii I test this hypothesis by looking at public opinion poll data from Gallup around the dates of events involving specific politicized dead bodies in the international world and see how support of the U.S. president and support of their foreign policy changes, if at all. The prediction is that support will increase around the time that the population is reminded of their own death (via a photo, video, dead-body event), but reports of the American public feeling safer will increase or decrease at the same time, depending on certain factors. The results demonstrate mild support for Hypothesis 1, finding that security decreased during times when the public witnessed the bodies of fellow American citizens. I found inconclusive support for Hypothesis 2, that security during times of viewing dead bodies of enemies would increase. Lastly, the data demonstrate support for half of Hypothesis 3: the data do not support a correlation with approval of the president, but do lend mild support for a correlation with approval of their foreign policy. Combining the lenses of Terror Management Theory and Ontological Security theory helps contextualize the societal-level receptivity to images of highly politicized dead bodies – specifically how U.S. citizens’ opinions about their own security, the president, and their country’s foreign policy fluctuates. Ontological security plays a role in how society perceives and reacts to these images, which in turn might compel a country to act in certain ways that are not understood by solely thinking about material security. Trigger Warning: descriptions of death, physical violence, homicide, military casualties, and terrorist attacks. No images are reproduced. iv Dedication To all my friends and family, as well as the dearly departed in my life: grandfathers Glen Miller and Alan Terwilliger, grandmother Rita Miller, cousin Tyson Simpson, and father-in-law Kun Zhang Deng. v Acknowledgments I recall watching an episode of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood where he discovers a dead goldfish in his aquarium. While burying the fish in his backyard, he calmly addresses the emotions of death, shares his own story about his late dog, and reassures us that it is okay to feel sad. Fred Rogers talked with kids in a respectful manner, especially about the uncomfortable topics of life. It is my hope, as it was his, that when something like death is mentionable, then it can become more manageable. To the people that helped make this thesis manageable, I am in their debt. I thank my research advisor, Dr. Ariane Liazos, for helping me at the very start of this project. Over the course of a semester, she took my vague interest in death and foreign policy and nurtured it into a promising proposal. I thank my thesis director, Dr. Ieva Jusionyte, for consistently shining a light on helpful materials. Your thoughtful and detailed comments pinpointed exactly where I needed to incorporate and revise. I thank Madison Singell and Patrick Sanguineti for their drive-by comments and validation of the struggles of getting a thesis completed. You are great colleagues to work with. I thank my family, especially my parents Neil and Vicki and my brother Austen. Mom and Dad, you raised two very smart boys even when your wallet was empty. Thank you for teaching us about compassion and helping others. Austen, I always seem to follow in your footsteps; it makes me a better person. I thank my grandmother, Ruth Terwilliger. You and Pop Pop always invested in my education and intellectual curiosity. vi Lastly, I thank my wife Jia Deng Terwilliger. You supported me during all of the days and weekends when I was working on this and we could have been doing something fun outside. I owe you many missed dinners, walks in the park, and date nights. Your love is boundless, as is the love from your family. 我爱你老婆. vii Table of Contents Dedication ............................................................................................................................v! Acknowledgments .............................................................................................................. vi! List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... xi! List of Figures ................................................................................................................... xii! Chapter I. Ontological Security and Terror Management in International Relations ..........1! Introduction ..............................................................................................................1! Research Questions and Hypotheses .......................................................................2! Literature Review of TMT and OST .......................................................................5! Definition of Terms ................................................................................................12! Highly Politicized Bodies ...........................................................................12! Mortality Salience ......................................................................................12! Ontological Security Theory (OST, ontological security) .........................13! Terror Management Theory (TMT, fear/denial of death) ..........................13! Chapter Breakdown ...............................................................................................13! Chapter II. Research Framework and Methods .................................................................15! Case Selection ........................................................................................................15! Polls and Emotions ................................................................................................16! Ontological Security Theory Considerations .........................................................17! OST’s Unit of Analysis ..........................................................................................18! Terror Management Theory Considerations ..........................................................20! Research Methods ..................................................................................................21! viii Framework for Analysis of Images of Death .........................................................24! Framework for Analysis of Hypotheses ................................................................27! Chapter III. Bodies of Enemies ..........................................................................................29! Qusay and Uday Hussein – July 24, 2003 .............................................................29! Data. ...........................................................................................................30!